At least 10 killed in Czech high-speed rail crash

An express train crashed into a collapsed bridge in the Czech Republic, killing at least 10 people and injuring about 100 more.

An express train crashed into a collapsed bridge in the Czech Republic on Friday killing at least 10 people and injuring about 100 more, police said.

The accident happened at around 10:30 am (0830 GMT) near the northeastern town of Studenka as the train travelled from the Polish city of Krakow to Prague, said police spokeswoman Miroslava Michalkova-Salkova.

"It's horrible. It's a disaster. According to information to hand, there are at least 10 dead," she said.

A Czech railways spokesman said the train was travelling at 140 kilometres an hour (about 87 miles per hour) when it hit part of a road bridge which had fallen onto the track.

"It probably hit part of a motorway bridge under construction which fell onto the track," said the spokesman, Jan Kucera.

The locomotive and three passenger carriages were derailed. "There's a lot of damage," he said.